UK watchdog reveals naughty list of which companies haven't paid data protection fees

NetApp, Jive Software, Gigya and more in the doghouse

Cloud data biz NetApp, pizza purveyor Prezzo and the UK arm of games developer Ubisoft have been named among a list of firms that haven't paid data protection fees to the UK's overstretched watchdog.

Since May, data controllers – organisations that define how and why personal data is processed – have been required to pay higher fees to the Information Commissioner's Office.

Unlike the much-publicised fines for data breaches, these fees go directly into the ICO's coffers – and the watchdog can wield fines of up to £4,000 for those that don't cough the cash.

The fees – although greater than under the previous data protection regime – are still relatively small for most firms. Organisations with fewer than 10 staff pay £40, SMEs are charged £60, and those with more than 250 staff or a £36m-plus turnover pay £2,900 a year. The fines are tiered, up to £400, £600 and £4,000 respectively.

But some still failed to pay, even after receiving a warning letter from the ICO back in September, so the watchdog started handing out fines.

When it announced the first wave of penalty notices, the ICO declined to name the organisations – but a list of companies that were issued a penalty notice non-payment in the year to 31 March 2019 has now appeared on its website.

The list includes gaming company Ubisoft Reflections – Reflections having been bought by Ubisoft in 2006 – and NetApp, which both employ between 250 and 499 staff in the UK, according to government records.

Other tech-related late-payers include Gigya UK, an Israeli customer identity management firm that was acquired by SAP in 2017; collaboration tool slinger Jive Software; and Mansfield-based network and server maintenance biz Kinetic ICT.

Larger companies on the list include publishing firm Conde Nast, pizza restaurant chain Prezzo and construction firm Caterpillar.

A company branded Privacy and Cookies Limited – which seems an interesting combination in and of itself – is also listed as not having paid up. However, according to Companies House, the business is also overdue in filing its accounts.

The ICO said that "for privacy reasons" it had hasn't included any sole traders who had been issued a penalty notice. ®